Villains of Fiore
by Blotched Ink
Summary: Siegrain's ultimate goal is to revive his master, the Dark Mage Zeref. But it's not easy. Seems the whole world is against him. Couldn't they just leave him alone? Of course not. Fairy Tail is always the ever present thorn in his plans. But even Fairy Tail has become the least of his worries now. A new 'hero' has emerged to try and stop him. Naruto.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **There are so many stories in this fandom about Naruto and Dragon Slayers and Fairy Tail that I wanted to try my hand at something a little different.

Okay, maybe it's a lot different.

* * *

**Story Summary:** Siegrain's ultimate goal is to revive his master, the Dark Mage Zeref. But it's not easy. Seems the whole world is against him. Couldn't they just leave him alone? Of course not. Fairy Tail is always the ever present thorn in his plans. But even Fairy Tail has become the least of his worries now. A new 'hero' has emerged to try and stop him. A mysterious powerhouse from another world. They call him Naruto.

In the meantime, Kurama, still trapped in Naruto's body, has plans of his own. With the newfound ability to control Naruto's body while Naruto is asleep or unconscious, Kurama undertakes his own adventure across the lands of Fiore in his quest for freedom from the host that keeps him in check. If only this Dragon Slayer girl, Wendy, were not so annoying.

* * *

**Villains of Fiore**

_'Life - the way it really is - is a __battle  
not between good and __bad,  
but between bad and __worse'_

~Joseph Brodsky

**Chapter 1: Siegrain Fernandes**

It seemed that life, for one Siegrain Fernandes, was one full of sneakiness. Even now, first thing in the morning, he was forced to rise covertly - or gently, rather - lest he wake the naked woman sleeping peacefully in his bed. He gave his latest conquest an appreciative grin as he all but twisted out from under the sheets. What was her name again? Reina? Rachel? He usually stayed away from the Rune Knights; for a reason he couldn't quite remember anymore, but this one with her cinnamon hair and ludicrously large chest was altogether too much to resist. _Not to mention how good she was at sheathing my sword_. Another sweet memory to add to his growing collection. He quickly dressed, grabbed a paper from his desk, and quietly left the room.

"You're late, Councillor Fernandes," came a sultry voice, just as the door closed behind him.

It seemed that life, for one Siegrain Fernandes, was one full of lies.

Councillor Milkovich, who always seemed to be such a bitch in the mornings, was waiting just outside of his room, arms folded beneath her own ludicrously large chest as she glared at him. Though Siegrain would never admit it to her face, Ultear Milkovich, unlike many of the others on the Magic Council, was nearly as beautiful as he was. Oh, and she was intelligent and vastly intuitive to boot. She doubtlessly knew exactly who he had been 'sparring' with in his room last night, but that didn't stop Siegrain from telling her otherwise with a straight face.

Almost cheerfully, Siegrain lifted the paper in his hand and smiled as graciously as he could manage. He imagined it was rather charming and dashing. A winning smile if there ever was one. "My apologies, Councillor Milkovich,' he said, copying her formality. "I was just preparing the notes for today's meeting and must have lost track of time."

Ultear frowned. "Is that what you were doing so loudly last night, then? Preparing notes? Perhaps you should just keep that pen of yours in your pants and let me handle the meeting notes from now on."

_Now that was just uncalled for. _Siegrain and Ultear each glared menacingly at the other for an awkward moment or two, neither giving even the slightest hint of backing down. Then, as quickly as it came, the moment passed and they both burst out laughing.

"When are you going to stop tormenting me in the mornings?"

"When are you going to stop sleeping with everything that moves?

Siegrain gasped, clearly affronted. "Please, I don't sleep with everything that-"

"Remember Captain Uma?"

Siegrain gagged on his own breath upon hearing the name, much to Ultear's apparent delight. Captain Uma. That's right, it was her. Captain Uma was the reason he avoided the Rune Knights. Uma was, if anything, strong, smart, and proud. Her skill in using spears and staves was a thing of grace and beauty, indeed. The Rune Knights revere her. Adore her, even. It was too bad, however, that she was bigger and more burly than most of the men she commanded. More gorilla than woman in looks. And Siegrain, just as he was blessed with a handsome face, was also cursed with the alcohol tolerance of a little girl. And so, that fateful night, one sip led to another and next thing he knew, he and Captain Uma somehow...

_I'll never admit it! _Siegrain coughed, recovering from the memory. Ever must he play the liar, especially when his pride was on the line. As skilled as any actor, Siegrain put on an air of casual indifference and shrugged, as if Ultear had just asked him how his day was. "Captain Uma? Doesn't ring any bells."

"Oh? Have you forgotten the love of your life already?" replied Ultear. "She still sends you letters you know? All the way from her station on the border of Pergrande."

Siegrain turned quickly and practically started sprinting down the halls towards the meeting room. He wasn't ready yet to re-open this particular wound. "I don't know what you're talking about."

But Ultear was closely on his heels. "Are you sure? She was as majestic as a Gorilla, people said. But with the heart of a maiden. Sweetness in savage form."

"Ultear, please. You don't have a clue what you're talking about."

"No?" she pressed on. "But, oh my, whats this? A letter? Addressed to none other than one Siegrain Fernandes it seems..."

Siegrain stopped dead in his tracks and turned. To his horror, Ultear was smiling as devilishly as ever, and held up a single sheet of paper of her own. "That... that can't be."

"So many letters get lost in the mail these days. And guess where they end up? Thats right, on MY desk, ever since you delegated your glorifed 'mail sorting' job to me. Intelligence, you called it? Hah! I call bullshit. But you should be thankful. At least one important letter found it's way to my desk. It's from Captain Uma, herself. Oh, and look, it's labeled as urgent. Shall I read it to you now?"

Nothing much could scare Siegrain. He was as powerful a mage as most of the Council members were, if not more so. On his way to becoming one of the respected members of the Magic Council, he had faced down his fair share of thugs and bandits, monsters and dark mages. He even faced down a real live dragon with nary a wrinkle on his face.

Yet the letter _terrified_ him. "No! Give it here!" Siegrain demanded. He lunged at Ultear, surprised at his own ferocity. He took to her with strength. With power. His pride on the line. But Ultear was horribly faster. Mercilessly more agile. She danced gracefully around Siegrain, making him look like nothing more than a clumsy oaf, and giggled all the while.

"To my dear Siegbear," read Ultear, already barely able to stifle her laughter.

Siegrain tried again to snatch the letter from her but his grasps continued to find nothing but empty air.

"...everyday I dream about that night. Our night..."

_Dammit._ Wasn't _he_ supposed to be the one in charge here? Ultear was technically his underling, after all. "Ultear, as your superior Councillor, I order you! Hand over the letter!"

She didn't even flinch, much to Siegrains anger and dismay. "...I was the dragon and you, the dashing hero, brandishing your mighty spear..."

Command didn't work. So begging, maybe? "Ultear, please! Have mercy! If the others find out, I'll never hear the end of it. I might even lose my position on the Council." The latter was unlikely, but Siegrain had to try.

But begging didn't work either, apparently. "...the battlefield was my bed. Oh, what a glorious moment it was when you slew me. The pain. The ecstacy..."

Last resort then. A bargain. "Stop! Stop! I'll do anything! Anything! Whatever you want, just name it!" _Pathetic. I can't even believe it myself._ _To have to stoop so low._ _Am I not Siegrain Fernandes? Master manipulator of the Magic Council?_ Apparently not to Ultear.

She finally stopped and smiled. And made her terrible demands. "You'll take back your stupid 'intelligence' duty."

"Yes, yes, of course," nodded Siegrain eagerly, never keeping his eyes off the letter in Ultear's hands.

"And you'll clean my room once a week."

_Clean your rooms? An odd request. _"O-okay... Fair enough."

A puzzled look came upon Ultear's face. "And a foot massage after every Council meeting."

_Now you`re just adding things for the sake of adding things._ He had to draw the line somewhere. "Now wait just a-"

Ultear raised the letter in her hand and sucked in a breath, ready to read aloud even more of the embarrassing letter.

"Wait! Stop!" Siegrain cried out. "Alright, I understand. A foot massage. After every... meeting." _Damn you, Ultear. You'll pay for this. As soon as I found out your weakness._

Ultear smiled. "Then we are agreed." A formidable one, this Ultear Milkovich. She raised the letter in her hand again and Siegrain watched as the parchment wilted and dried before his very eyes. In seconds, it crumbled into dust then disappeared forever into the air. Even her magic, Arc of Time, was not to be trifled with. "And don't even think about backing out on our deal. I've got other letters where that one came from. Your lover has quite the way with words."

"Indeed," Siegrain sighed with utmost resignation. "Indeed..."

Ultear laughed. "She even wrote a song! Can you believe it? I think I'll sing it to you after the meeting as you give me that massage. It's quite catchy. I can't wait to see the look on your face."

_Was he really the master manipulator here? Or was she? _Siegrain simply bowed his head in defeat as he shuffled beside Ultear on their way to the meeting room. _Indeed._

* * *

**A/N: **Stopping here for now while I work out some of the details of my story. Tell me what you think of the idea.**  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **Updated my summary in chapter one. Siegrain isn't the only main character. The story will switch to Naruto, Kurama, and Sasuke quite often.

An epic story focused on the bad guys and loosely following Fairy Tail cannon. That is my goal.

* * *

**Chapter 2: The Meeting**

"An hour late," quipped Ultear needlessly as they approached a set of particularily impressive looking double doors. "An _hour! _The others will have our heads."

Siegrain only smiled at that. _Poor Ultear, to be so naive. _The doors to the meeting room, guilded in gold, and engraved with elaborate designs and glowing runes, never failed to impress Siegrain. He wondered if the doors themselves might be worth more than the entire building they hinged upon. They definitely seemed far more pretty than practical. And directly behind those incredible doors awaited eight, likely furious, Councillors, daring Siegrain and Ultear to enter and face their wrath. 'The others will have our heads,' was the understatement of the century. But as always, Siegrain had an infallible plan up his sleeve.

Beside him, Ultear almost looked nervous through stoicness of her poise. Emphasis on the almost. Siegrain thought it was a shame, really. Nervousness would have suited a cold beauty like Ultear. A dash of frailty or a pinch of weakness would make her near irresistable to any man. Instead, most men around Ultear cringe at her natural confidence and arrogant demeanor, one that made it seem as if the entire world were nothing but a stain beneath the heel of her boots. It even threw Siegrain's game off. Any inclination he once had of trying to seduce Ultear was immediately tossed away when they had met and she opened her brazen mouth.

That and he had more of a thing for red-heads. Siegrain grinned in reminiscence of the night before.

"Well, it seems one of us is less worried about our jobs than the other. I swear, if I'm fired because of you-"

Ever the compassionate fraud, Siegrain placed a comforting hand on Ultear's shoulder and shook his head. "Ultear, Ultear, Ultear... just do me a favor and make yourself look angry. That and follow my lead. It seems a mutual friend has come through for us once again."

Ultear's confused scowl made it's way over to him. "Mutual friend?"

Siegrain waved the paper that was in his hand. "Oh, yes. My best friend, in fact. Never fails me when I'm in a pinch," he said.

With practised ease, Siegrain roughed up his Councillors robe and ruffled his hair. Then he quickly worked his own expression into one of fiery anger. Once he was pleased with Ultear's efforts at doing the same, Siegrain raised his arms and heaved open the doors as violently as he could.

They crashed open loudly. And the effect was exactly as Siegrain had hoped.

Everyone in the room was staring at them.

The room was tall and brightly lit. Upon an elevated platform held an elegent crescent shaped crystal table where the members of the Magic Council sat. There were eight of them there, and all eight heads were turned directly to Siegrain and Ultear, each face either a mask of anger, confusion, or concern. Nobody spoke. Nobody breathed. And the resulting silence was all but deafening.

If Siegrain could shake the hand of any one man at this very moment, it would surely be Natsu Dragneel. Siegrain's 'best friend'. Even if Natsu, himself, didn't know it.

"Fucking Natsu Dragneel!" roared Siegrain, directing every ounce of his feigned fury to the rest of the Council. "Have you any idea what he's done now? Have you?" Siegrain flailed the sheet of paper in his hand as theatrically as he could muster. "Seven buildings. Seven! And a fucking church! All burned to the ground! When does his destruction end?"

And just like that, any ounce of anger or frustration that was previously directed at Siegrain and Ultear's tardiness, now reared their angry fangs towards Natsu Dragneel. Just as Siegrain had planned. He could kiss Fairy Tail's Dragon Slayer if he could.

"Natsu! Again?" raged a middle-aged man with massive sideburns and tiny round sunglasses. This was Councillor Leiji. "Why haven't we thrown him into the dungeons yet? He's caused more strife than half the dark guilds combined."

"Are you speaking of that incident in Freesia Town?" mused Councillor Belno, the only other woman on the Council aside from Ultear. She was a tall and slender woman, perhaps approaching her late... fifties? Nobody had ever dared to ask her age. "We thought it had been a dark guild. To think it was Natsu all along..."

"Of course it was Natsu," shouted another member of the Council Siegrain couldn't ever remember the name of. "Has there been any incident involving a fire that Natsu wasn't a part of?"

Siegrain nearly laughed and blew his cover at that. Fortunately, he recovered and turned the would-be laugh into an angry grunt at the last second. The nameless councillor was right. It was _always_ Natsu's fault whenever there was a fire involved. He was very reliable in that regard.

"I've said it before and I will say it again, Makarov cannot keep his children under control!" This booming voice was from Councillor Michello, who held the third seat on the Council. A short brown-haired man with a mustache and a tail. He resembled a monkey, in a way. "Him and the rest of his Fairy Tail must be dealt with!"

"Throw them all in the dungeons, I say!" threw in Leiji.

"I'm sure there must be some mistake..." muttered Councillor Yajima, not sounding half as sure of himself as he usually was. Yajima was always a staunch supporter of Fairy Tail, but he could only defend the troublesome guild so much. This time, he simply put his face into his hands and shook his head, likely disappointed with Fairy Tail's antics yet again.

The back and forth continued between the other Councillors as Siegrain and Ultear shut the doors behind them and casually took their seats. Nobody gave them a second look, aside from Councillor Org that is. The old, bearded man had always been wary of Ultear and Siegrain for some reason. And now, there seemed to be some implied threat beaming from his glare.

Siegrain pretended not to notice.

"Order!" demanded the chairman of the Council after a while. "We will have order!"

And just like that, silence returned to the room. Siegrain was impressed.

"Councillor Fernandes!" boomed the Chairman's voice. "I take it you have already begun measures to deal with Natsu?"

Siegrain nodded tersely and began his lackluster lie. "Eyewitness reports have already been collected and the damage assessment well underway. Once that is complete I will have-"

"You will have Councillor Yajima continue the investigation," interrupted the Chairman.

Siegrain raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Had his procrastination been caught?

Councillor Org, suprisingly, spoke up for him instead. "But surely-"

But Org, too, was quickly interrupted. "Order, I said!" demanded the Chairman, making Org none-too-happy. "The issue is settled. There is a much more important matter of business that requires our attention."

Siegrain swallowed hard. Had the rest of the Council found out about the Tower of Heaven? He was sure it was well hidden from the Council's eyes. That was his purpose in joining the Council in the first place. Siegrain's hands gripped tightly around the armrest of his seat, heart ramming hard against his chest.

"There is a rumor spreading that Zeref himself has been ressurected."

_Eh? _Equal parts relief and confusion washed through Siegrain. _So they still don't know about the Tower. But Zeref, ressurrected? Impossible!_ _The tower isn't even complete yet._ Siegrain looked around at the other Council members and all of them had much the same face Siegrain imagined he himself had. Faces of shock and surprise.

"Impossible..." muttered Councillor Yajima, as if he had read Siegrain's thoughts.

"Agreed," said Councillor Belno. "Such ridiculous rumors. We should think nothing of it."

"We should have those rumor-mongering townsfolk thrown into the dungeons!" added Councillor Leiji, fervently.

"Enough," said the Chairman. "Normally I would dismiss such rumors but there have been reports from the Rune Knights of unusual magical energy around the town of Hargeon." The Chairman then motioned over to both Siegrain and Ultear. "Councillors Fernandes and Milkovich. As the two newest and least-recognizable members of the Magic Council, I want you both to disguise yourself as townsfolk and investigate these rumors."

_"What a crock of shit, old man!"_ Siegrain wanted to say. But in the end, he kept it to himself. _The completion of the Tower delayed for this bullshit?_ Siegrain was not happy and for once, he didn't have to fake the scowl on his face. _But then again... what if it really is Zeref? _That got Siegrain thinking. What a happy coincidence that would be.

"Start at Hargeon Town and follow the rumors to the other nearby towns if need be. I want the source of the rumors found. And if you find anyone suspicious..."

"Lock them in the dungeons!" interrupted Leiji. The entire Council gave him a dark look after that. Leiji turned suddenly sheepish at all the glaring going his way. "Wh-what...? I just had the dungeons renovated. Shouldn't we use them?"

The Chairman ignored him. "So, do you understand, Councillor Fernandes? Councillor Milkovich?"

"Yes," replied both Siegrain and Ultear in unison.

"Report to me as soon as you find anything," said the Chairman in finality. "Now, next on our itinerary..."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **I doubt anyone cares, but I'll be gravitating towards smaller but more frequent (sometimes daily) updates from now on. **  
**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Sasuke Uchiha**

_I did it._ Sasuke told himself once again as he struggled on his hands and knees, trying to push his battered body off of the mud-slicked ground. He wanted to get up, to stand, but the pain that throbbed through every inch of his entire body would not let him do so without a fight. After a brief struggle, Sasuke simply relented and collapsed onto his back, arms spread wide. It didn't feel much better but at the moment, he couldn't bring himself to care. He had just achieved a momentous victory, after all. And victory came with rewards. Though in Sasuke's case, the reward was simply more pain.

_Was it worth it? _Sasuke stared up at the grey sky. Rain fell hard on him, enough to just about soak him through to the bones. He almost wished he could drown in the rain. _Was it worth betraying Konoha? Betraying Naruto? Wouldn't it have been better if Naruto had won? _Everything would've been much simpler. That was for sure. It would've been easier, too, perhaps. He wouldn't have had to struggle so hard anymore. But would it be better? Sasuke shook his his head, disappointed with his own thoughts. _It wouldn't. Definitely not. Who would carry out my vengeance? Who would avenge my family and bring justice to my brother?_

_Not Konoha. _Sasuke frowned. _And certainly not Naruto._

The pain ebbed just enough for Sasuke to struggle into a sitting position and his eyes quickly found Naruto's body lying prone less than a few feet away. Naruto wasn't dead. The rythmic rising and falling of the blonde's back was evidence enough of that. But he certainly wouldn't be getting in Sasuke's way anymore. Not for the time being, at least.

_Sorry, Dobe-kun, but some things just have to be done._

Getting past Naruto was just the first on his to-do list. Gaining more power was next. Sasuke managed to stand up and rub the back of his neck. He could feel the curse seal there, pulsing with dark energy. It was a great power. A dangerous one. Yet it wasn't enough. Not even close, if he wanted to kill his brother. Sasuke would trade in his own body for enough power to defeat Itachi and that was exactly what he was planning to do now. Orochimaru needed Sasuke's body for his immortality jutsu. And Sasuke needed Orochimaru's power in order to defeat his brother. It would be a bargain forged from hell. But Sasuke knew it would be worth it in the end.

There was a moan from Naruto and Sasuke twitched. The blonde seemed to still be radiating an intense amount of energy. The air, now that he had regained the sense to notice it, was chock full of chakra. But when Sasuke took to a fighting position and activated his Sharingan, he quickly realized the the energy wasn't coming from Naruto at all, but from some kind of energy mass floating above them both.

_The hell is that?_

It looked like a maelstrom of dark chakra, the size of a coin, twisting into itself. Sasuke backed away, slowly, and suddenly, the maelstrom got bigger, nearly ten times the size it was before in a manner of seconds. Sasuke backed away even more, faster this time, and the maelstrom's growth exploded, knocking Sasuke back first into the ground.

Sasuke cursed and tried to shield his face, arms trembling from the power the maelstrom emanated. _Am I being attacked?_ _What the hell is happening? What kind of jutsu is this?_ That was the when the maelstrom stopped pushing him away and instead, began pulling him in. His instincts immediately told him to find something to hold onto but his fingers could only clutch loose dirt and wet mud. He tried activating his curse seal but that didn't seem to help either as he was already in mid-air. The extra strength was useless without anything to grab hold of. So Sasuke thrashed and yelled helplessly. He had even tried flapping the useless bone wings at his back but it didn't help at all. His legs, at that moment, must have made contact with the maelstrom as they, out of nowhere, burst into incredible pain.

Hapless, he was dragged in. Blinding pain seared through his entire body. He could scarcely breath, let alone think, and quickly succumbed to a brilliant whiteness that overtook his every sense before he finally recieved the sweet mercy of unconsciousness.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Kurama**

_Drip... drip... drip drip... drip..._

Kurama stirred awake to the familiar sound of his prison inside of Naruto's mindscape, each tiny drip resonating like a scream through the fox's throbbing head. It felt as if his brain were trying to burst out from his skull and almost succeeding. Such was Kurama's agony. It got to a point that he even chose to keep his eyes clenched shut to help ease the pain. And oh-so-little help it was.

"So Brat," Kurama sneered, sensing the blonde boy, Naruto, likely watching nearby. "Come to borrow more of my power? You'll get none from me today."

There was no answer. Only the constant sense of the boy watching him. Watching him suffer. Watching him in pain. Watching him in his moment of weakness. Now _that_ wouldn't do... wouldn't do at all.

Kurama growled in anger and it came out as more of a roar. He lashed his great claws out to strike at the bars that held him in. It was an attempt to startle Naruto, to get him shaken and to reintroduce some fear into the Brat. But instead, it was Kurama who was startled when his claws, which should have rattled against the bars, hit nothing. Nothing at all.

And that was when he opened his eyes.

Kurama could scarcely believe any of it. He was not in his usual dark and murky cell. There were no walls or prison bars keeping him confined. The floors were not filled paw-deep with water. In fact, none of his surroundings were the least bit familiar. Nor did any of it make sense. The familiar _drip drip_ was not from the dripping of water onto the floors of his cell, but from a wet leaf dripping water into a nearby pond. When he breathed in, it was not the stale chakra that would normally assault his lungs, but crisp and fresh air. It smelled of grass and moss. It smelled of trees and dirt. It smelled of wet and rain.

And best of all, it smelled of freedom.

The thrill of this realization struck Kurama hard. Harder than the throbbing in his head and the aching across the rest of his body. He could have laughed. Could have cried. Instead, he chose neither and ran around in circles like an excited kit might have done, bellowing out his approval loud enough for the entire world to hear.

_I am free. I AM FREE! _

He could do as he pleased again. Could go wherever he wanted. Destroy whatever he liked. _I am the great Nine-Tails once more!_ he thought. And as if to prove it, Kurama lashed out one of his tails against a nearby tree, and he watched, eagerly, waiting for it to splinter into a million flaming pieces.

Only it didn't. No orange tail ever emerged in front of his eyes. The tree did _not_ get completely and utterly decimated. In fact, nothing happened at all.

And that was when a completely different sort of realization struck Kurama. He looked down at his own body and his euphoria became completely undone. Shattered, like the tree should have been. His body was not covered in orange fur, like he expected, but instead by a sickly bright orange-and-blue jumpsuit. He had no paws or claws but human hands and fingers. He reached back to feel for his tails, but none were there. Not even one.

_What is this!? _Kurama demanded to himself, but already he suspected the answer. He rushed to the pond nearby, ignoring his searing headache and sore muscles, and looked; he looked upon the reflection. It was the boy, Naruto. _He_ was the boy, Naruto. The anger came at Kurama so hard he could not contain it. Kurama roared fiercly, hearing the Brat's voice echo through the forest in the near distance instead of his own.

He was _not_ free. Not if he was still stuck in this pathetic human body. Furious at this discovery, he formed a mighty Rasengan in the palm of his hand. The massive ball glowed red and vicious, mirroring the rage that he felt inside of him. And he unleashed it against the tree that he failed to destroy earlier.

This time, the tree _did_ splinter into a million pieces. And with it's destruction came something else: an almost imperceptable little whelp coming from the forest. Kurama turned to it immediately.

His sharp vision caught a small dark-haired human female, tripped onto her bottom, and staring horrified at Kurama. Kurama only glared fiercly back at her and unleashed another roar, startling the girl into scrambling frantically onto her feet.

So that was the person that he felt watching him earlier. His anger erupted. _Could SHE be the one responsible for this? It must be! Why else would she be watching? How dare a puny human defy me like this! _

By now, the tiny human girl had already gotten to her feet and was scurrying through the trees of the dark forest. And Kurama leaped to the chase, growling at everything in his wake.

The girl was fast. Very fast. And small enough to squeeze past the tiny gaps through some of the trees that Kurama had to move around instead. And Kurama, entirely unused to his own human physique could barely keep up with her through the maze of leaves and branches. He could tell that, already, the girl was slowly gaining distance on him as she weaved nimbly through the dense forest. But always, Kurama could smell her. Sense her. Track her. He would not lose her because of her simple tricks. _If only these damn trees were not in the way._

He powered up a giant red Rasengan in each of his hands and ran with them. If going around the trees slowed him down, then he would simply go _through_ them. Beelining towards the girl, Kurama plowed through everything in his path with the Rasengans held up in front of him. Trees and roots were shredded and splintered as if they were paper. Rock crumbled to dust. Tiny animals that were unfortunate enough to get in the way splattered in mists of blood and meat. And it was working, he was quickly catching up.

He could see the girl now as she glanced back in horror and tried in vain to pick up her pace. He could sense the girl's terror and wallowed in it; could almost taste it. His vengeance would be sweet indeed.

When he got closer still, he began to hear the girl's ragged, desperate breaths. She even squeaked every so often when she glanced back and realized that it was all but hopeless to keep running. Yet she continued running anyways and Kurama began to tire of the chase.

He transformed one of the Rasengans in his hands into a Rasenshuriken and took aim, waiting for the girl to glance back again. When she inevitably did, Kurama cracked a terrible smile and blasted the Rasenshuriken at the girl's head. He wanted to see the final look of despair on her face before she died.

But suprisingly, the girl leapt in the direction she was running and turned around impossibly fast. The move was strange and awkward. Nonsensical even. But when she unleashed something from her mouth, Kurama sensed danger and leapt out of the way. She had unleashed some kind of powerful beam of wind that managed to deflect the Rasenshuriken; deflected it just enough to force it to scrape by the girl by a hair, shredding some of her clothes in the process, but otherwise sending it flying harmlessly into one of the trees nearby.

The blast of wind from the girl that had nearly hit Kurama had he not dodged, tore through several trees itself before it dissipated. Kurama would have been impressed were he not so furious. _So the girl can bite back._

It was time to end this. The girl's earlier move had definitely cost her. She lay on her back, coughing and wheezing intermittently between half-sobs as Kurama cautiously approached. An animal is most dangerous when it is cornered and Kurama suspected that tiny human girls were no exception to the rule.

When he got to her and looked down, the girl stared back up at him in disdain through the tears in her eyes. There was fear there, as Kurama expected, but also curiously some strength and defiance. And from one so young. These humans never ceased to amaze Kurama. This, at least, earned the girl a quick death.

So Kurama readied a Rasengan in one of his hands and...

...and suddenly everything turned completely black.

He felt no more headache and no more pain. But he could no longer see. The reason, Kurama found out, was because his eyes were slowly re-adjusting to the darkness.

_No. _The bars were the first thing he recognized. _No... _Then the water all over the floor. _NO!_ Then the familiar dark and dirty walls. Kurama roared once again and this time it was the monstrous roar of a Nine-Tailed Demon Fox.

He was back to the prison inside of Naruto's mind.

_Drip... Drip... Drip..._

* * *

**A/N: **The girl is Wendy. Suprise! Not. Next chapter, Naruto. Then probably back to Siegrain and Ultear.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **This chapter may seem like pointless fan service. But I would like to think of it as very subtle character development.

Ah... who am I kidding?

* * *

**Chapter 5: Naruto's Dream**

It was a beautiful day and the streets of Konohagakure were lined with people going about their business. Naruto, the Fifth Hokage, made his way to his office as the villagers all respectively bowed out of his way. He waved to the gathered crowds of fans and admirers as he walked, gifting a few of them with his awesome Hokage smile. The men beamed back proudly, the women swooned and strew his path with flowers and packets of ramen, all of them more than delighted to be noticed by the strongest Hokage the world had ever seen. It was because of Naruto, afterall, that the village was completely at peace.

Unfortunately, peace could not suit all people.

When Naruto made it to the doors of the Hokage tower, two would-be assassins from some peace-hating village materialized out of thin air and attacked him head on. But Naruto the Hokage was always prepared. He sighed as he dispatched one assassin with an easy Rasengan to the stomach and yawned as he blasted a hole through the other with his new favorite jutsu: the Rasengan eyebeam.

"Death to Peace and Love!" screamed a third assassin as he charged at Naruto. The young and handsome Hokage only frowned at the sorry excuse of an assassin and drew his Rasenkatana: a long sword with a blade made entirely out of tiny Rasengans. Likely blinded by the sheer awesomeness of the sword, this third assassin could do nothing but continue his suicidal charge and get cleaved in two.

After all that, Naruto resheathed his Rasenkatana and allowed himself a long and languid stretch. It was all in a day's work for Naruto, greatest Hokage of them all.

Speaking of work, there was a gigantic mound of paperwork waiting on top of Naruto's desk when he finally entered his office. Paperwork was the bane of all Hokage, it seemed, and Naruto, despite how awesome he was, was no exception. Naruto sighed again. He hated paperwork. And as such, there was only one way to deal with it. He charged up another Rasengan.

But before he could...

"Why so tense, Hokage-sama?" said a familiar voice, all smooth and silky as it entered his ears.

A lithe ANBU stepped out from the shadows of the room and removed her dog-shaped mask, exposing pink hair, luscious lips, and comely emerald eyes. She also undid some of the top buttons of her shirt for no reason other than to reveal more cleavage, it seemed.

Not that Naruto was complaining. "Sakura-chan?" he asked, lifting a suspicious eyebrow. The ANBU was definitely none other. And somehow, she looked older than Naruto remembered. And had a much bigger bosom too.

"Let me help you relax a bit," she offered, seductively tracing the edge of the desk with a finger. "It's the least I can do for the best Hokage ever."

"Well...," Naruto started innocently. "I am a little sore..."

Sakura was eager as she moved to Naruto's back and her fingers dug tenderly into the muscles of his shoulders, bringing indescribable relief to the pain Naruto didn't even know he was feeling until then. She even began pushing a pair of something even softer into his back as her finger did their miraculous work. And her breath came hot and heavy on his neck.

That was when doors to his office suddenly burst open, and another familiar girl waltzed in. This time it was...

"Ayame-chan?"

Without any warning, the young serving girl from his favorite ramen stand, Ichiraku's, wearing nothing but a revealing apron, stomped towards Naruto. She stopped just short of his desk and with a single sweep of her arm, threw all the paperwork off onto the floor.

"What are you doing?" Naruto demanded, cautiously.

"Forget the paperwork, Hokage-sama," she said. If she noticed Sakura, still lovingly massaging his back, she didn't show it. "This is far more important..." she moved her hands down the curves of her body and licked her lips. Then she reached underneath her apron and somehow withdrew a steaming bowl of ramen.  
Naruto couldn't help but blush. "Dattebayo..."

"Now, Hokage-sama... would you like dinner first? Or me..." Ayame tugged her apron just enough to reveal even more cleavage as she climbed all cat-like upon the desk. "Or maybe... both?" Sensually, she moved into a cross-legged sitting position upon the desk and placed the bowl between her legs.

"B-but Ayame," Naruto gulped, his already tiny resolve melting away. "I already have Sakura."

"You're the Hokage, aren't you?" demanded Ayame. "It's your duty to make your people happy. All of your people."

From out of nowhere appeared Hinata. And Ino. And Tenten. Scarcely dressed and clawing at him like he was a piece of meat.

"She's right, Ho-ka-ge-sa-ma," said Sakura at his back. "It's your duty. So you'd better get to work. On all of us." That last part was whispered directly into his ear, sending shivers of pleasure down Naruto's spine.

Who was he to argue with duty?

That was when Naruto woke up.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **I may restructure my story a bit later and change the order of the chapters around. Not yet though. Need to release a few more chapters first.

* * *

**Chapter 6: Naruto Uzumaki**

Naruto remembered every time Sakura had punched him in the face. There was that time he accidentally went to the wrong side at a public bath house and saw her naked. There was that time she caught him reading one of Kakashi's books. And he would never forget that time when he called her kinda sorta but not really... fat. 'A little chubby' was the term he had actually used, but nobody would ever believe that on account of the beat down he received afterwards.

Of course, he always took Sakura's violent outbursts like a man. He would not flinch or back away nor try to defend himself. He would simply accept her punches much like the way he solemnly accepted that his diet must consist of more than just ramen and milk. Make no mistake, Sakura's punches hurt like hell. They were demeaning. They made him feel bad, angry, weird, awkward, shocked, uncomfortable and a plethora of other things all at once. But he accepted them because Sakura was a good friend that he believed truly cared for him. So if Sakura needed to punch him to make herself feel better, than he would bite the bullet. That's what friends did for eachother, right?

But now, as Naruto awoke, it felt like Sakura had punched him in the face again. Only this time, there was no punch. And there was no Sakura. And so there was nothing to accept.

At first, he was in denial. To have such an amazing dream taken away so suddenly was a jarring experience. And then as that went away, he noticed the pain. _Why the heck does everything hurt so much?_

Naruto's mind was like a Rasengan made of emotions. His lust and excitement was already fading fast, replaced with frustration and disappointment. There was a layer of doubt swirling there. And anger too. His fear rose quickly, then faded just as fast when no danger became apparent. And a tiny swell of sadness made itself known when he pointedly realized that the Sakura in his dreams was way hotter than the real Sakura.

But rising to the top of all his emotions was confusion. A whole lot of it. Enough to nearly blot out everything else he felt. And this confusion was caused by many things.

First of all, he was standing. That's not to say he had gotten up. In fact, he hadn't moved at all since had awoken, yet somehow he was already on his feet. Not once in his thirteen years of age (that he could remember at least) had he ever awoken standing up. Not to mention, he was in some kind of strange forest. Nothing was adding up.

Second of all, there was a bright red and rather larger than usual Rasengan already formed in the palm of his hand. The wind jutsu had been, weirdly, a prominent part of his latest dream but it struck Naruto as odd that it would form of it's own accord outside of it. Never before had he heard of someone performing ninjitsu in their sleep, let alone a dangerous a one like the Rasengan.

But the worst of all the confusion came from the fact that a young dark-haired girl lay at his feet, clothes half torn, frantically panting and sobbing and glaring up at him as if Naruto himself was the one responsible for her current condition. He didn't know who she was or where she came from. All Naruto could garner from the situation was that this girl looked completely defenceless and here he was, standing over her with a Rasengan all ready to use. Naruto fought back the bitter bile that rose in his throat.

Not thinking, he tried to let the Rasengan dissipate immediately, and it did so in a violent outburst. Angry red swaths of wind cut uncontrolled in every direction. It sliced across the ground, the trees and Naruto himself, each slice felt like a whip lashing against against him.

The girl on the floor clenched her eyes shut and screamed. Naruto forced himself to shield the girl at the last second and reflexively twisted his body to block as much of the girl's body from the brunt of the dissipating jutsu as he could. It hurt like hell.

When it ended, however, the girl did not seem appreciative of Naruto's efforts. The screaming stopped. But her glare all but intensified, and added to it were now hints of suspicious confusion. But Naruto figured it was enough of an improvement to try to say something to her.

"Sorry," apologized Naruto as quickly and sincerely as he could. He got up and offered her a hand. "What happened? Are you alright?"

But the girl only looked as if he had just given her a mighty slap across her face. "What... happened?" She gasped between her sobs. "Am I... alright?" Now she sounded delirious. She grabbed Naruto's hand with a strength he didn't expect. Because he was off-guard, Naruto was haplessly pulled in. And just as he was about to stumble on top of her, she threw a foot into his crotch. "You jerk!" she screamed as she kicked him.

"Graaaaaggggggh!" yelled Naruto. He suddenly found himself twisted agonizingly in ways he thought impossible. Ways that would make a contortionist cringe. Splotches of black and white filled his vision and his mind went completely blank for a moment from the incredible pain.

"What _happened?_" repeated the girl, incredulously. "I can't believe you!" Naruto struggled to stare up at her. She looked to be around his own age - maybe a bit younger - and, if the kick to his jewels wasn't evidence enough, she was very very angry. "Is this your idea of some sick joke?"

_Kami, what did I do to deserve this?_

"Well it's not funny!" And just as the girl said that, Naruto watched helpless, as she wound up and gave him another kick, this one to his face. Naruto closed his eyes and grunted in pain as the kick landed on his forehead. It wasn't nearly as hard as one of Sakura's punches but it had a similar enough effect.

He had no idea what was up with this girl or why she was attacking him, but his honour demanded that he defend himself. Or at least in this case, explain himself. "Wait..." Naruto moaned. "What did I do...? I think you've got the wrong guy."

But the girl would not have any of it. "The nerve!" she screamed. "I hate you! Just die, you jerk!" And it was all Naruto could do at the moment but listen to the sound of her footsteps as she ran away.

Naruto had no idea how long he laid there, doing whatever he could to ease the pain he felt. The burning soreness wasn't just at his crotch and forehead where the girl had kicked him. The pain was _everywhere._ It made him wonder what had happened to put him in such a terrible condition.

And then, he suddenly recalled it. _The Valley of the End. Sasuke. _More of that terrible memory leaked into his mind. Sasuke had betrayed the village and wanted to seek out Orochimaru. Naruto tried to stop him. They found each other at the Valley of the End and a terrible battle ensued. _Did I win? _Naruto sat up and looked around. Sasuke was nowhere in sight. If Naruto had won, Sasuke would have been laying incapacitated somewhere, waiting for Naruto to carry him back to the village.

_Or did I lose? _Naruto didn't feel like he was dead. The breathing and pain was a stark reminder of that. Nor did it feel like he was dying, either. He was just a little sore - okay a _lot_ sore. But definitely alive.

The way that they had fought earlier, if nothing else, exposed Sasuke's resolve. His precious raven-haired... friend... did not hold back. Every strike had been aimed at vitals. Every jutsu meant to land a killing blow. Sasuke had been dead serious when he said that he wouldn't allow anything to get in his way. Even if it were Naruto himself.

_So then... why am I still alive?_ Naruto couldn't make sense of it.

_Maybe it was a draw?_ But this seemed the least likely of scenarios. Again, if their battle had ended in a draw, Sasuke would still be around and clearly, he was not. And Sasuke would have definitely killed him if he had gotten up first. It was all so very confusing. Naruto squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose to ease the resulting headache.

_And where they hell am I?_ This wasn't the Valley of the End anymore, that much was certain. In fact, it didn't even look like he was still in Fire Country. The trees all looked strange. They were oddly shaped and much thicker than anything he had ever seen around Konoha. They had weird looking leaves too. And they smelled different.

When Naruto finally managed to get up, he peered in the direction that the girl had run. There were more trees there. And no discernable path that he could see. Going that way seemed pointless to him. There was only the chance he would find that girl again and Naruto decided, for his own sake, that the less he saw of her, the better.

So he gawked in the other direction. There was a straight-line path full of debris and destruction; a path that seemed to head out of the forest itself. A much more promising path to Naruto. Naruto's only hesitation was that all that destruction looked fresh and out of place. _What the hell did that?_ he thought to himself. _Maybe Sasuke?_ It seemed worth investigating.

And so Naruto's mind was made up. His mission was restored: to bring Sasuke back to the village before he could do anything stupid, like going to Orochimaru. The mission wasn't just for Sasuke. It was for Konoha. It was for Sakura. It was for himself. He had made a promise, afterall, and he refused to go back on it. "Yosh!" he said to himself, re-invigorated. "Let's do this."

And that was when Naruto heard the high-pitched scream. It came from the other direction. The girl's direction. Was she in trouble? The echo of a beastly roar in the distance answered that question for him. Naruto clenched his teeth. Why did stuff like this have to happen at the worst possible time? He had a choice to make now. Should he go help the girl who hated him for no reason at all and risk losing track of his best friend forever? Or should he just continue after Sasuke and leave the girl to her fate, whatever that fate may be. The girl had a fairly hard kick, he reasoned feebly, maybe she'd be fine. The monster didn't even sound that scary.

There was another blood-curdling roar in the distance. Followed by another desperate-sounding scream.

Naruto bit his lip. _Dammit. _There was no choice here. No choice at all. He jumped up to the forest canopies and traversed across the branches towards the direction of the girl's scream. He hoped he would not be too late.


End file.
